According to the Central Bank of Russia, volume of loans given by Tyumenenergobank to for-profit self-regulatory organizations for 31 to 90 days went down by 69.07% (from 567.03 million RUR to 175.388 million RUR) in January-November 2007.

Ural Treasures Bank keeps expanding its ATM network in different parts of Russia, the bank’s press officer reports. A new ATM appeared at 60 Vetluzhskaya St., Perm, Perm Territory. The ATM is situated inside a supermarket, so it’s available from 8 AM to midnight. At the same time, the bank had to remove its ATM located at 41/1 Mira St., Perm, Perm Territory.

Standard & Poor's confirmed Sverdlovsk Region’s long-term credit rating at BB, while the raging outlook was changed from Stable to Positive. 'We reconsidered the rating due to the ongoing economic growth within the region,’ says Irina Pilman, Standard & Poor’s credit analyst. According to the agency’s official report, Sverdlovsk Region is one of Russia’s most developed industrial areas, yet its rating promotion is hindered by unstable budget, volatile profit tax income, increasing outgoings, and lack of investment. At the same time, these negative factors can be made up for

A heavy-duty crane made by Uralmashzavod has been successfully tested at one of nuclear power stations in India. This crane was shipped to the end user in June 2005; it weighs 600 tons and is capable of lifting up to 450 tons. The crane is extremely durable and has great operational capacity even under very trying circumstances. For instance, the crane can operate during a nine-point earthquake (on the Richter scale). This was the first time a crane of such durability and forbearance has been made in Russia. Uralmashzavod has made five cranes for the Indian power station altogether. Apart

Central Bank of Russia reports volume of loans given by Pervouralsk Joint Stock Commercial Bank to for-profit self-regulatory organizations for over 3 years went down by 30.69% (from 8 million RUR to 5.545 million RUR) in January-November 2007.

The awarding ceremony of National Purchase Transparency Rating 2007 took place in Moscow on December 11, 2007. This is the annual national rating that covers both the state and private largest purchasing agents and assesses them in terms of transparency and efficiency of their actions. The project is supported by a number of NGOs as well as the State Duma Anti-Corruption Committee and the Federal Antimonopoly Service. The rating featured 328 organizations, ranked along the transparency levels, from Guaranteed to Low, and along categories (federal, regional, municipal, and corporate purchasing

The drawing procedure of URSA Bank’s prize-winning lottery known as Cozy Deposits took place on December 1, 2007. All the lottery participants (deposit holders who opened any deposit worth at least 50,000 RUR, $2,000, or Ï2,000 between October 1, 2007 and December 1, 2007) had their chance, and 242 customers won various prizes, the bank’s press officer reports. The first such drawing took place on November 3, 2007. ‘URSA Bank has just come with two new offers: New Year Hit and Hot Sampling. We are inviting our customers to sample our deposit offers, which is why we’ve introduced some

Governor of Sverdlovsk Region Eduard Rossel met a group of IKEA delegates headed by IKEA GD in Russia and the CIS. According to IKEA’s top executive, the company would like to put up some lumber mills and furniture factories in Sverdlovsk Region and is willing to invest 2 billion RUR in the project. The Governor was requested to decide what land allotments with some timber reserves nearby would make suitable premises for the plants and factories. Mr. Rossel replied that Sverdlovsk Region’s timber industry was a rather developed one, so it’s a bit peculiar to see that IKEA only does business

Central Bank of Russia reports volume of loans given by Uralfinance Bank to natural persons for 91 to 180 days went down by 90.07% (from 10.37 million RUR to 1.03 million RUR) in January-November 2007.

The volume of the Ural Bank for Reconstruction and Development’s customers’ operations at RTS (FORTS) doubled in November 2007 and reached 25.8 billion RUR. This is why the bank was promoted to the 16th position among 131 organizations. In addition, the bank was given the 11th position in a special rating of companies with largest option transaction volumes, which is four positions better than in October 2007. What is more, the bank was rated 38th out of 50 leading MICEX operators, as its share marker turnover came to 6.6 million RUR in November 2007.

According to the Central Bank of Russia, volume of loans given by Tagilbank to for-profit self-regulatory organizations for 91 to 180 days went down by 93.73% (from 4.788 million RUR to 300,000 RUR) in January-November 2007.

Central Bank of Russia reports volume of loans given by UralFinPromBank to sole traders for 31 to 90 days went down by 21.3% (from 1.5 million RUR to 1.18 million RUR) in January-November 2007.

The Moscow representation of Siemens has been searched by the police within the framework of a criminal lawsuit filed against a company’s employee in Yekaterinburg. The alleged offender is accused of selling tomographic scanners to local hospitals at prices that were unfairly high. One of the top managers from the company’s head office is reported to have been detained, yet his name and position have been kept confidential. The inquiry officers believe two Siemens tomographs were bought at prices that were too high, and Siemens representative in Sverdlovsk Region Lev Dubnov has already been

Governor of Sverdlovsk Region Eduard Rossel met the French consul-general in Yekaterinburg; it was announced in the course of the meeting that the French consulate will start operating in Yekaterinburg in December 2007, whereas the solemn opening ceremony with a lot of French businessmen present has been scheduled for the end of January 2008.

The Beverage Testing Institute (Chicago, Illinois, USA) published the result of its international drinks contest; it was reported that BLAGOFF vodka had won the gold medal, leaving many globally recognized brands behind. The Beverage Testing Institute is a respectable American organization founded in 1981 and an independent strong drinks observer. Their team of experts and sommeliers is completely objective. About 1,300 strong drinks from all over the world take part in the contest annually, with the results published by The New Yorker Magazine, Wine & Spirits и International Wine Review.

According to RBC.Rating’s research that features Russia’s largest banks in January-September 2007, seven Ural banks hit the top one hundred positions in terms of their net assets; three of them are based in Tyumen Region, three banks are located in Sverdlovsk Region, and one bank is located in Chelyabinsk. SKB-Bank was given the 75th position. RBC.Rating’s analysts report the company’s volume of net assets has exceeded 28.533 billion RUR by October 2007, which is 53% better than at the beginning of the year. Thanks to this impressive asset growth, the bank’s rating was promoted by eight

Central Bank of Russia reports volume of loans given by Ural Innovational Commercial Bank to for-profit self-regulatory organizations for 1 to 3 years went down by 28.09% (from 100.429 million RUR to 79.253 million RUR) in January-November 2007.

The Hungarian consulate is going to start operating in Yekaterinburg at the end of December 2007, the spokesperson for the Governor of Sverdlovsk Region reports. On December 7, 2007, Governor Eduard Rossel visited the Republic of Hungary as a member of an official delegation headed by Head of Russian Government Viktor Zubkov. While there, Mr. Rossel took part in some intergovernmental meetings and was present at a number of document-signing ceremonies, including the one regarding the introduction of the Hungarian consulate-general in Yekaterinburg.

According to the Central Bank of Russia, volume of loans given by Sverdlovsk Gubernskiy Bank to for-profit self-regulatory organizations for 1 to 3 years went down by 8.83% (from 1,066,036,000 RUR to 971,929,000 RUR) in January-November 2007.

On June 23, 2007 Rostransnadzor and Rosaviation (the state transportation watchdogs) imposed bans and limitations on flights to the EU operated by some Russian air carriers. Ural Airlines, for one, was restricted in the type of aircraft it could use for these flights, namely, the airline was not permitted to use its Tu 154M planes until those were brought in compliance with the international regulations. Ural Airlines’ performance in the summer was flawless; in addition, the airline strictly obeyed all the instructions, so all the limitations imposed on the carrier have been canceled. This